Cookies and Whiskey
by michellewritesfics
Summary: Rawlings gets a midnight snack and is caught by Whiskey, Cassidy's pet lion. Rawlings tries to talk his way out by blaming the lion. One conversation leads to another and Rawlings ends up knowing a little more about why Cassidy is the way he is. Flyboys. Oneshot.


Wearing a wrinkled white shirt and a pair of loose gray pajamas to match, Blaine Rawlings crept the halls, finishing up his late-night snack. He had been told that one of the new members, Nunn, had a sweet tooth and Rawlings smuggled a small jar of it to Nunn's room. The two shared and talked for a while until Nunn had finished his half of the treats. The pilot from Texas bid the other goodnight and silently strode away back into the darkness.

He left crumbs. Some of them huge, others small. Rawlings tried his hardest to stop the cookies from falling from his hands, but they crumbled with a simple touch. "Aw!" A groan was presented when a large chunk of his cookie fell to the floor. Before he could reach down to pick it up, a rumbling growl interrupted him. A hairy mass on all fours stealthily strolled across the floor and brushed its body at Rawlings' side and took the piece from the floor into its mouth with a noisy slobber.

"Hey, get outta 'ere! Shoo!" Rawlings gestured at the thing to go away. He made another noise as he slapped at the animal's thigh. He pushed the rest of the cookies from his hand to his mouth. Rawlings said in a quiet tone, "Come on, Whiskey. Get out of here!" He had at least four cookies stuffed in his pajama pocket, but the hairy body didn't reach for it. The animal lapped at the crumbs Rawlings left behind and tilted its head up to lick at Rawlings' fingers. "No, come on!"

"Having trouble there, cowboy?" A new voice emerged which caused both Whiskey and Rawlings to track the source. A male of normal build leaned against the doorframe of his room. Loose light blue dress shirt and black pajamas to compliment him. "Come here, Whiskey." The figure stepped forward and patted at his thighs as he whistled for Whiskey to obey him. In the dim light, the figure was recognized as Reed Cassidy, Whiskey's owner. Once the animal, which appeared to be a lion, walked away from Rawlings to Cassidy, the lion produced a content purr.

Rawlings realized he had been caught and tried to exit the scene by stepping away. When Cassidy noticed that the gap between him and Rawlings was extending, Cassidy blew a sharp whistle, causing Rawlings to stay put. "Hey, I was just grabbing a snack. No hard feelings, right? I mean, it's not a crime to get hungry during the middle of the night, huh?" He gulped thickly. Rawlings traveled his eyes from Cassidy to Whiskey. "It's all your pet's fault, really."

With this, Whiskey emitted a menacing growl directed to Rawlings. Cassidy pinched his brows together and patted at Whiskey's back. "Trying to pin this all on the mascot? I would've expected better from you, kid. Still, I won't take this conversation any further. We both need as much sleep as we can. I suggest you get going to bed." Cassidy commented and turned his back away from Rawlings, trailing back into the comforts of his room. Whiskey soon followed.

Just when Cassidy shifted to shut the door, Rawlings stopped him by sprinting over to him, and put his foot in the gap of the doorframe and the door. "I get at least four hours of sleep and I'm doing fine. I don't need the hours."

"But I do. Now stop wasting my time and get to bed." Cassidy gave Rawlings a glare. The light from his room, a crackling heat from the fireplace, just brought more intimidation to Cassidy's look.

Rawlings just stood there. After ten seconds or so, Rawlings slid into the room and flopped onto the nearest chair. He discovered Whiskey by him and the lion rested its front paws on Rawlings' knees. The Texan pushed Whiskey away, slight fear returning. "Come on, stop it, you."

Cassidy rolled his eyes and left the door open, turning to face Rawlings and the lion. "Get out."

"You get out." Rawlings quickly replied, folding his arms. As Whiskey tried to crawl onto Rawlings' lap, he continued pushing the big cat away from him. "Come on!"

"He likes you. He doesn't do that to just anyone, kid." Cassidy walked away from the doorframe and to a vacant chair. He moved the chair, scraping the furniture's legs along the floor, and made a screeching noise that caused an unpleasant sound to any living thing's ears. Whiskey responded to it by successfully crawling on Rawlings' lap. A chuckle escaped from Cassidy's lips. He turned to look at the fire, eyes reflecting the white and warm colors of the fire. "What are you doing here? You're not even fit to be here. You have a ranch back in the States. You should get out before you're sucked into it."

Rawlings doesn't answer to the question and tried to sway the conversation away by creating another. "You know, I think your cat likes me more than you."

The black-haired man stopped looking at the fire and glanced at Rawlings. "Yeah, right. I doubt you'll be able to take care of him." Cassidy whistled for Whiskey and the lion hopped off Rawlings' lap, then trotted over to Cassidy's side. He brushed his hand over Whiskey's body and Cassidy opened his mouth to speak again. "I've had him for a few years now."

He moved frantically about in his seat, mainly because he wanted to regain circulation in his legs, Rawlings said, "I don't get why you'd ever have a lion as a pet. Were you drunk or something when you took him in…? I mean, he's a lion for god's sake! Lions kill!"

"Not Whiskey."

Rawlings shook his head and spoke again, "Normal people have cats, dogs, birds. Hell, normal people would get a turtle or a rat! But never a lion." He waited for Cassidy to reply, but he didn't give Rawlings an immediate answer. He still waited; however, and the silence caused him to grow even more nervous. "Then again, you aren't normal, aren't you? I heard that, uh, you lost all your pals. I'm sorry."

When Cassidy heard the last two words from Rawlings' mouth, he brought all his attention to him. His eyes sparked a growing and silent anger, but he didn't want to project it. No, he wanted to keep it all in and force it out when he's in the air. "I don't need your pity."

"I'm not saying that you- I-I'm just saying that maybe, you know, I could be one of your friends. If you'd like." Rawlings gulped and fidgeted with his hands, his eyes moved away from Cassidy and onto Whiskey. "Or you know, an acquaintance. Someone you can talk to. You're not really the social type, I get that, but come on… you can't stay like this forever, Reed."

One of Cassidy's eyes twitched at having been addressed by his first name and produced a light scoff. "Don't call me that. And I don't need friends," he took a short pause, "in the war, you can't have friends-"

"Why not?"

"Don't interrupt when I speak." He stated before he continued on, "In the war, you can't have friends because they'll die. War is hell, cowboy, and you can't get too attached on anyone." After having cleared his throat, Cassidy stood up and pointed at the door. "It's getting late. Get your sleep." Bags were forming under Cassidy's eyes and he was beginning to get weary. For a quick second, his eyes turned vacant as he looked at the door.

Rawlings didn't budge. He didn't even bother following Cassidy's gaze. "Um, a-all right. Yeah, no. I get it. You're afraid of losing people. That's why you have Whiskey. You've got someone to come back to. He's your only pal." He didn't realize it, but he was pushing the conversation - and Cassidy's anger - even further. He tried to branch out to Cassidy. He wanted to. Rawlings said, "You've got me and Porter and Jensen. Beagle, Skinner, and Lowry. Come on. You've got us."

A heavy sigh was made and Cassidy's empty expression turned more sinister. He tossed Rawlings another glare. "Get out." He said in a low, almost growling, pitch. "Get. Out."

"All right, all right." Rawlings finally stood up from his seat and looked around, the vintage wallpaper dressing Cassidy's personality nicely. "You've got taste." Rawlings complimented and walked over to him. He saw Cassidy's pent-up anger rising and stepped away a bit. The Texan fished out for the extra cookies in his pocket, balanced three on the arm's chair, and smiled. He found Whiskey moving to swallow at one of the cookies. "Maybe you won't be so angry after a bite, yeah?" Rawlings joked, took the rest of the cookies from his pocket, and stuffed them in his mouth. He twirled around in search for a clock and once he found it hanging on the wall, he rubbed at one of his eyes and forced a yawn to come out. "See you in the morning, I guess." For some reason, Rawlings saluted at Cassidy and exited out of the room completely.

"At least shut the door, Rawlings!" Cassidy shouted out, the words echoed in the room and a bit into the hall. He soon found the very same brown-haired man by the entrance. He didn't have a cookie in his mouth or a solemn look, but a delighted spark in his eyes. A cheeky grin accompanied with the look. "Why're you grinning?"

Rawlings laughed and shook his head lightly. "You said my name."

It took a moment for Cassidy to register it, having to rewind the past minute in his head. "So I did. Now get to bed. It's late and we're both tired, cowpuncher." In a flash, Rawlings disappeared. Again, being left alone with his pet, Cassidy looked down at Whiskey. The big cat snacked on the other cookie and left the last one on the arm chair. Cassidy chuckled and picked the cookie. He wiped the crumbs off the arm. "Good luck on tomorrow's training, kid." Cassidy munched on the cookie as Whiskey licked at the crumbs that were carelessly tossed.

Rawlings reappeared into Cassidy's sight, obviously having not left the area fully. "Good luck to you too, sir." He still has his child-like smile painted on his face. He waved goodnight and finally left, shutting the door along the way. Cassidy was left alone for the last time.

"Moron." Rawlings' smile passed down onto Cassidy as he formed a genuine one. After having finished the treat and wiped the crumbs from his face, Cassidy shifted deeper into the room and sat on the edge of his bed. He glanced over at the bright fire. The pilot stared at it for a couple of minutes before being distracted by Whiskey's purring. He brought his legs up on the bed and tucked his lower body under the thick blanket provided. He shut his eyes and all Cassidy could hear was Whiskey's purring, decreasing with every breath Cassidy took. When it stopped completely, a dim thud was heard.

Opening one of his eyes, he scanned at the floor to see Whiskey curled up beside his bed. Another smile formed and he scooted closer to the edge to stroke at the drowsy lion. He closed the opened eye and soon enough, Cassidy dozed off almost instantly to prepare for another day of training. Another day of having to deal with the inexperienced members. Having to deal with Lowry, Beagle, Skinner, Jensen, Nunn, and Rawlings. Cassidy had a lot of preparing to do.


End file.
